Source switching for devices supporting dynamic direction information

ABSTRACT

With the addition of directional information in the environment, a variety of service(s) can be provided on top of user identification or interaction with specific object(s) of interest by pointing at the objects. Sometimes either the device user and/or the publishers of content cannot complete a content exchange due to connectivity to data or services becoming lost. A device provisioned for pointing or direction based services losing connectivity to a first network while engaging pointing based services. In response, one or more other sources for the pointing based services are identified on a second network or device to which the device can connect and the device automatically connects to the second network or device to receive the pointing based services, or data for use with the pointing based services (e.g., GPS information, point of interest data, direction data, etc.), from the one or more other sources.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application Ser.No. 61/073,849, filed on Jun. 19, 2008, entitled “MOBILE COMPUTINGDEVICES, ARCHITECTURE AND USER INTERFACES BASED ON DYNAMIC DIRECTIONINFORMATION”, U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/074,415, filed onJun. 20, 2008, entitled “MOBILE COMPUTING SERVICES BASED ON DEVICES WITHDYNAMIC DIRECTION INFORMATION”, and U.S. Provisional Application Ser.No. 61/074,590, filed on Jun. 20, 2008, entitled “MOBILE COMPUTINGSERVICES BASED ON DEVICES WITH DYNAMIC DIRECTION INFORMATION”, theentireties of which are incorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The subject disclosure relates to the provision of direction-basedservices for a device based on direction information and/or otherinformation, such as location information, and to automatic switchingbetween disparate networks, sources of information and/or services uponwhich the direction-based services are based.

BACKGROUND

By way of background concerning some conventional systems, mobiledevices, such as portable laptops, PDAs, mobile phones, navigationdevices, and the like have been equipped with location based services,such as global positioning system (GPS) systems, WiFi, cell towertriangulation, etc., which can determine and record a position of mobiledevices. For instance, GPS systems use triangulation of signals receivedfrom various satellites placed in orbit around Earth to determine deviceposition. A variety of map-based services have emerged from theinclusion of such location based systems that help users of thesedevices to be found on a map and to facilitate point to point navigationin real-time and search for locations near a point on a map.

However, such navigation and search scenarios are currently limited todisplaying relatively static information about endpoints and navigationroutes. While some of these devices with location based navigation orsearch capabilities allow update of the bulk data representing endpointinformation via a network, e.g., when connected to a networked portablecomputer (PC) or laptop, such data again becomes fixed in time.Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a set of richerexperiences for users than conventional experiences predicated onlocation and conventional processing of static bulk data representingpotential endpoints of interest.

Moreover, with conventional navigation systems, a user may wish torequest information about a particular point of interest (POI), but ifthe user becomes disconnected from a given network or information source(e.g., if the user goes underground losing visibility to GPS satellites,communications network interrupted or out of service, etc.), thelocation based services become dysfunctional. The user experiencesuffers as a result since users cannot interact with desired point ofinformation.

The above-described deficiencies of today's location based systems anddevices are merely intended to provide an overview of some of theproblems of conventional systems, and are not intended to be exhaustive.Other problems with the state of the art and corresponding benefits ofsome of the various non-limiting embodiments may become further apparentupon review of the following detailed description.

SUMMARY

A simplified summary is provided herein to help enable a basic orgeneral understanding of various aspects of exemplary, non-limitingembodiments that follow in the more detailed description and theaccompanying drawings. This summary is not intended, however, as anextensive or exhaustive overview. Instead, the sole purpose of thissummary is to present some concepts related to some exemplarynon-limiting embodiments in a simplified form as a prelude to the moredetailed description of the various embodiments that follow.

Direction based pointing services are provided for portable devices ormobile endpoints. Mobile endpoints can include a positional componentfor receiving positional information as a function of a location of theportable electronic device, a directional component that outputsdirection information as a function of an orientation of the portableelectronic device and a processing engine that processes the positionalinformation and the direction information to determine a subset ofpoints of interest relative to the portable electronic device as afunction of the direction information and/or the location information.

Devices or endpoints can include compass(es), e.g., magnetic orgyroscopic, to determine a direction and location based systems fordetermining location, e.g., GPS. To supplement the positionalinformation and/or the direction information, devices or endpoints canalso include component(s) for determining speed and/or accelerationinformation for processing by the engine, e.g., to aid in thedetermination of gestures made with the device.

With the addition of directional information in the environment, avariety of service(s) can be provided on top of user identification orinteraction with specific object(s) of interest. For instance, variousembodiments automatically switch among sources for points of interestdata, direction data, position data, direction based services, and/orvarious networks that interconnect the devices and the data and servicesfor direction-based services.

Various embodiments for a device provisioned for pointing based servicesinclude receiving pointing based services by a device via a firstnetwork, but losing connectivity to the first network. In response, oneor more other sources for the pointing based services are identified ona second network or device to which the device can connect and thedevice automatically connects to the second network or device to receivethe pointing based services, or data for use with the pointing basedservices (e.g., GPS information, point of interest data, direction data,etc.), from the one or more other sources.

These and other embodiments are described in more detail below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Various non-limiting embodiments are further described with reference tothe accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of a non-limiting device architecturefor pointing based services including automatic data or servicesswitchover capabilities;

FIG. 2 illustrates a block diagram of a non-limiting device architecturefor pointing based services including automatic network switchovercapabilities;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a device that supports pointingbased services and includes a location data connectivity switchingsubsystem;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a device that supports pointingbased services and includes a direction data connectivity switchingsubsystem;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a device that supports pointingbased services and includes a point of interest data connectivityswitching subsystem;

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a device that supports pointingbased services and includes a network switching subsystem;

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a device that supports pointingbased services and includes a direction based service switchingsubsystem;

FIG. 8 is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary non-limiting processfor automatically recovering from connectivity loss;

FIG. 9 is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary non-limiting processfor automatically recovering from connectivity loss in the context ofloss of location information;

FIG. 10 is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary non-limiting processfor automatically recovering from connectivity loss in the context ofloss of direction information;

FIG. 11 is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary non-limiting processfor automatically recovering from connectivity loss in the context ofloss of point of interest information;

FIG. 12 is a block diagram illustrating a representative architecturefor supporting predictive pointing based services;

FIG. 13 is a block diagram illustrating a representative device forsupporting predictive pointing based services;

FIG. 14 is a block diagram illustrating the formation of motion vectorsfor use in connection with location based services;

FIG. 15, FIG. 16 and FIG. 17 illustrate aspects of algorithms fordetermining intersection endpoints with a pointing direction of adevice;

FIG. 18 represents a generic user interface for a mobile device forrepresenting points of interest based on pointing information;

FIG. 19 represents some exemplary, non-limiting alternatives for userinterfaces for representing point of interest information;

FIG. 20 represents some exemplary, non-limiting fields or user interfacewindows for displaying static and dynamic information about a givenpoint of interest;

FIG. 21 illustrates a sample overlay user interface for overlaying pointof interest information over a camera view of a mobile device;

FIG. 22 illustrates a process for predicting points of interest andaging out old points of interest in a region-based algorithm;

FIG. 23 illustrates a first process for a device upon receiving alocation and direction event;

FIG. 24 illustrates a second process for a device upon receiving alocation and direction event;

FIG. 25 is a block diagram representing an exemplary non-limitingnetworked environment in which embodiment(s) may be implemented; and

FIG. 26 is a block diagram representing an exemplary non-limitingcomputing system or operating environment in which aspects ofembodiment(s) may be implemented.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Overview

While each of the various embodiments herein are presentedindependently, e.g., as part of the sequence of respective Figures, onecan appreciate that a portable device and/or associated networkservices, as described, can incorporate or combine two or more of any ofthe embodiments. Given that each of the various embodiments improve theoverall services ecosystem in which users wish to operate, together asynergy results from combining different benefits. Accordingly, thecombination of different embodiments described below shall be consideredherein to represent a host of further alternate embodiments.

Among other things, current location services systems and services,e.g., GPS, cell triangulation, P2P location service, such as Bluetooth,WiFi, etc., tend to be based on the location of the device only, andtend to provide static experiences that are not tailored to a userbecause the data about endpoints of interest is relatively static, orfixed in time. Such conventional location systems have not factored indirection information into the experience either.

In this regard, one or more embodiments herein employ directioninformation in connection with location information enabling a pointingor directional approach to interacting with points of interest. In suchsystems, a user may become unable to receive pointing or direction basedservices because of disconnection from a communications network.Similarly, the user may experience interruption of receiving data neededto carry out the direction based services. For instance, the user maylose access to any of position data (e.g., disconnected from GPSsatellites), direction information (e.g., compass not working), or pointof interest data or services (e.g., cellular network unavailable), whichmay make fulfillment of any real time location or direction basedservices a further challenge.

Accordingly, in various non-limiting embodiments, when connectivity islost to one or more parts of the provision of pointing based services,an automatic network switchover occurs, which can be based onautomatically searching for and finding an alternate source for a givenset of information or services sought. The switchover can be based onprioritization rules as well.

An exemplary non-limiting pointing based services enabled deviceincludes an engine for analyzing location information (e.g., GPS),compass information (N, W, S, E), and movement information (e.g.,accelerometer) to allow a platform for finding objects of interest in auser's environment. A variety of scenarios are provided based on a userfinding information of interest about objects of interests, such asrestaurants, or other items around an individual, and tailoringinformation to that user (e.g., coupons, advertisements). However, tomaximize interaction with objects of interest, a way to switch over toalternate sources for information and services is desired. Such servicescan be offered as part of cloud services, web services, or from otherdevices near a given device, e.g., via Bluetooth.

In such a system, a user may interact with a lot of different POIs, andrequest information about those POIs, however, in the situation where auser loses connectivity to a data network, or loses a signal to a GPSsatellite, rather than fail, it would be beneficial to provide requestedinformation to a user from an alternate source.

A way to switchover to alternative sources is thus provided forinformation if any of the data or positional information is temporarilyunavailable, e.g., from a nearby other device, or from locationinformation received by a bus in which the user is travelling. A varietyof scenarios are explored illustrating the benefits of being able tomaintain a consistent user experience that minimizes failure.

In one embodiment, a device provisioned for pointing based servicesreceives point of interest data from pointing based services based onpointing information associated with a direction of the device via afirst network. If the device loses connectivity to the first network,another source of point of interest data to which the device can connectvia a second network is identified and the device automatically connectsto the second network to receive the point of interest information fromthe other source.

The other source can be an on-site data store of point of interestinformation pertaining locally to the device. The other source can be adata store of point of interest information pertaining to points ofinterest of a physical structure (e.g., a building or store such asCostco) where the device is located. The other source can be anothernearby computing device having point of interest data that can beshared, e.g., upon receiving a request for permission to obtain thepoint of interest data.

In one embodiment, another device may not already include the data ofinterest, but the other device can provide access to needed data fordirection based services via a third network unavailable to the devicedirectly. Thus, for instance, the device connects to a second device,e.g., via Bluetooth, and the second device in effect provides access tothe third network to the device, e.g., for a negotiated fee. In thisway, the device obtains its point of interest data or direction basedservices and the second device profits from making such data or servicesavailable to the device.

Another scenario is where a user connected to a long range wirelesscommunications network, such as a cellular network, becomes unable toconnect to the long range network, e.g., if the user goes in a tunnel.Thus, the tunnel itself could host a short range network that covers thelocal area, or otherwise provide surrogate access to a longer rangenetwork. This way, when the device loses connection to the long rangenetwork, the short range network replaces the long range networkautomatically. For instance, when a mobile phone loses connection to amobile device communications network, the mobile phone automaticallyswitches to another device with needed data or network access viaBluetooth to provide a seamless user experience.

In one embodiment, a portable electronic device includes a memory thatstores direction information representing information pertaining toorientation of the device, position information representing informationpertaining to location of the device and point of interest informationrepresenting information pertaining to points of interest substantiallywithin interactive range of the device. The device includes a positionalcomponent for receiving the position information as a function of alocation of the portable electronic device and a directional componentthat measures the direction information as a function of an orientationof the portable electronic device.

The device further includes a switching component that switches among atleast two sources for the position information when a source for theposition information is not delivering position information to thedevice. The switching component can also switch among at least twosources for the direction information when a source for the directioninformation is not operating. The switching component can also switchamong at least two sources for the point of interest information when asource for the point of interest information is unavailable.

The device can further include a processor (e.g., CPU, GPU, etc.)configured to process the position information and the directioninformation to determine identifier(s) of points of interest withinscope of the device, to receive information corresponding to theidentifier(s) of the points of interest, and to display information ifthe device interacts with at least one point of interest. The processorcan process the position information and the direction information todetermine identifiers of at least one point of interest within scope ofthe device, to receive advertisement content corresponding to the atleast one identifier of the at least one point of interest, and torender the advertisement content if the device interacts with at leastone point of interest.

The device can include a pointer that visually indicates the orientationof the portable electronic device based upon which the directionalcomponent outputs the direction information. The directional componentcan be a digital compass that outputs direction information.

In another embodiment, a method for a pointing based services enableddevice can include determining direction information as a function of adirection for the device, determining position information as a functionof a position for the device, receiving pointing based services based onthe direction information and position information via a first network,losing connectivity by the device to the first network, identifying atleast one other source for the pointing based services to which thedevice can connect on a second network and automatically connecting tothe second network to receive the pointing based services from the atleast one other source.

The method can further include determining motion information as afunction of movement of the device and the receiving of pointing baseservices is based on the direction information, position information andthe motion information. The connecting can include automaticallyconnecting to a nearby device that hosts the pointing based services,e.g., via Bluetooth.

Details of various other exemplary, non-limiting embodiments areprovided below.

Data Source/Network Switching for Devices Supporting Dynamic DirectionInformation

With direction based services, users can thus interact with a set ofendpoints in a host of context sensitive ways to provide or updateinformation associated with endpoints of interest, or to receivebeneficial information or instruments (e.g., coupons, offers, etc.) fromentities associated with the endpoints of interest, and where failurewould otherwise occur due to loss of connectivity to data or a network,any of such actions can be facilitated by automatic switchover toalternate source(s) of data/networks.

For instance, as shown in FIG. 1, a direction based services enableddevice 100 includes various sub-components that can be used inconnection with the provision of such direction based services. Forinstance, as input to a direction based services engine 110, the device100 uses point of interest data, location information and directioninformation as part of interacting with various direction basedservices. A user can also interact graphically or otherwise via keyinput with user interface 120, the commands for which are carried out bythe direction based services engine 110. In this regard, in variousembodiments, the device 100 can include any one or more of point ofinterest data source controller and interface 102, direction basedservices source controller and interface 104, location informationsource controller and interface 106 or direction information sourcecontroller and interface 108, which perform the automatic switchoveramong one or more sources for their respective information domains.Components 102, 104, 106, 108 can be combined or provided separately, oraccording to sub-combinations.

For instance, point of interest data source controller and interface 102operates to automatically switch among different sources of point ofinterest data 112, 114, . . . , 116. Thus, if the device 100 is outsideand then goes inside a store and becomes disconnected to a data source112 for point of interest information, then the device 100 canautomatically switch over to a server source 114 inside the store whichprovides a local geo-cache of point of interest information applicableto the store. When the user goes outside again, the server 114 is nolonger visible to the device, and the device 100 automatically switchesback to source 112 or another source 116 for point of interest data.

For another example, location information source controller andinterface 106 can switch among different sources for locationinformation, depending on power of the device, connectivity, etc. Forinstance, source 132 might be GPS signals, source 134 might be cellulartower triangulation techniques, and source 136 might be a local in-storeset of transceivers that perform signal timing and triangulation fordevices that are inside the store only so that a maximally effective instore pointing based experience is provided. Thus, controller andinterface 106 automatically switches among different sources of locationinformation on behalf of the direction based services enabled device100.

For another example, direction information source controller andinterface 108 can switch among different sources for directioninformation, depending on power of the device, connectivity, etc. As anon-limiting example, source 142 might be an on device digital compass,source 144 might be a compass on a bus or airplane in which the device100 is travelling, and source 146 might be an external connection to acompass. Thus, controller and interface 108 automatically switches amongdifferent sources of direction information on behalf of the directionbased services enabled device 100. In this regard, if the on devicedigital compass source 142 becomes disabled, and the user is travellingin a bus, then the user may switch over to a different source ofdirection information. When travelling in a bus, the directioninformation associated with the bus may be more relevant than the deviceorientation. Or, in one non-limiting embodiment, the device 100 can makeuse of both device orientation source 142 and the bus orientation source144 to make both bus and device orientation a part of an interactivepoint of interest experience via direction based services.

In addition, the device 100 may include a direction based servicessource controller and interface 104. In this regard, there may bemultiple different providers of the same or different direction basedservices from sources 122, 124, . . . 126, and where device 100experiences failure of delivery of services from any of such sources,the device 100 automatically switches over to an alternate source forthe service or services. As noted, the sources of point of interestdata, direction based services, location information, and directioninformation may all be accessed via a variety of wired or wirelessdata/communications networks 130.

This is illustrated in more detail in the embodiment of the blockdiagram of FIG. 2 in which network switching controller and interface140 is introduced. As a layer between point of interest data, directionbased services, location information, and direction information,networks 130 can also have automatic switchover applied to them. Forinstance, when the device 100 switches over from location informationsource 132 to location information source 136, the device 100, vianetwork switching controller and interface 140, may also correspondinglyswitch between network N1 to N2. In addition, as illustrated by networksN3, N4, and N5 in the context of direction information sources 142, 144and 146, interface 140 may be able to reach a subset of sources, thusaffecting potential prioritization of switchover. If N4 can reach all ofthe sources 142, 144, . . . , 146, then it may be the preferable networkto try first. Other factors, such as power consumption, might alsoaffect the prioritization, but all other factors being the same, adevice would prefer a more ubiquitously available network choice.

FIG. 3 illustrates a non-limiting example of a mobile computing device300 according to an embodiment. In this regard, a set of services 360can be built based on location information 322 and direction information332 collected by the phone. For instance, location information 322 canbe recorded by a location subsystem 320 such as a GPS subsystemcommunicating with GPS satellites 340. Direction or pointing information332 can be collected by a direction subsystem 330, such as a compass,e.g., gyroscopic, magnetic, digital compass, etc. In addition,optionally, movement information 312 can be gathered by the device 300,e.g., via tower triangulation algorithms, and/or acceleration of thedevice 300 can be measured as well, e.g., with an accelerometer. Thecollective information 350 can be used to gain a sense of not only wherethe device 300 is located in relation to other potential points ofinterest tracked or known by the overall set of services 360, but alsowhat direction the user is pointing the device 300, so that the services360 can appreciate at whom or what the user is pointing the device 300.

In addition, a gesture subsystem 370 can optionally be included, whichcan be predicated on any one or more of the motion information 312,location information 322 or direction information 332. In this regard,not only can direction information 332 and location information 322 beused to define a set of unique gestures, but also motion information 312can be used to define an even more complicated set of gestures. Thegesture monitor 370 produces gesture information 372, which can be inputas appropriate in connection with delivering services 360.

As mentioned, in another aspect, a device 300 can include a client sidememory 380, such as a cache, of potentially relevant points of interest,which, based on the user's movement history can be dynamically updated.The context, such as geography, speed, etc. of the user can be factoredin when updating. For instance, if a user's velocity is 2 miles an hour,the user may be walking and interested in updates at a city block bycity block level, or at a lower level granularity if they are walking inthe countryside. Similarly, if a user is moving on a highway at 60 milesper hour, the block-by-block updates of information are no longerdesirable, but rather a granularity can be provided and predictivelycached on the device 300 that makes sense for the speed of the vehicle.

In this regard, such a mobile computing device 300 may include alocation data connectivity switching subsystem 390, which switches amongsources 340, 342, 344, etc. FIG. 4 illustrates that a device 400 basedon the device of FIG. 3 can include direction data connectivityswitching subsystem 490, which switches among sources 440, 442, 444,etc. As mentioned, device 400 may also benefit from combining theresults of sources 440, 442, 444, etc. where multiple sources areavailable. FIG. 5 illustrates that a device 500 based on the device ofFIG. 3 can include a POI data switching subsystem 590 that switchesamong various sources 540, 542, 544, etc. to retrieve POI informationand data. FIG. 6 in turn illustrates a device 600 based on the device ofFIG. 3 that uses a network switching subsystem 690 to switch amongvarious networks, such as WiFi 640, Bluetooth 642 to another computingdevice 646, or cellular networks 644 to reach the set of services 360.Similarly, flattening out networks 740, the switching of which ishandled by network switching subsystem 690, FIG. 7 illustrates that adirection based service switching subsystem 790 can be provided within adevice 700 based on the device of FIG. 3 that switches among differentdirection based services 760, 762, 764, etc.

FIG. 8 is a flow diagram of an exemplary non-limiting process that canbe employed in the context of direction based services. At 800, a deviceis engaging pointing based services using at least a first network forconnectivity to one or more direction based service providers. At 810,such connectivity is lost for any reason. At 820, connectivity isregained quickly, or in real time, e.g., due to an automatic search foran alternate source for the missing aspect(s) of the failed directionbased service being used at 800. One common scenario might be losing along range network in favor of a short range network, or vice versa,when a device goes into, or conversely leaves, a confined space from anopen space. At 830, or at anytime, the device may explicitly orimplicitly be opted into a mesh device cooperation network, so that, forexample, all of the devices inside a given store can collectively shareinformation about points of interest in the store.

A user might be standing next to a frequent shopper of a store who haspurchased the item of interest, and that user can have access to thatinformation if the frequent shopper has opted in to the cooperativestore network. Processing, memory, and other computing resources can beshared via a cooperative network as well.

FIG. 9 is a flow diagram of an exemplary non-limiting process that canbe employed in the context of direction based services and the loss oflocation information from a source. At 900, optionally, a user can optinto a mesh network for sharing of location information. This way, theuser's device becomes part of sharing network that other devices cantake advantage of in the event their connectivity is compromised. At910, connectivity to device location services is lost, or the device maynot even be equipped to support location services. At 920, location datais received from one or more other nearby sources (e.g., other devices)equipped with location subsystems. At 930, the surrogate locationinformation provides a basis for a device, which otherwise could notreceive direction based services based on a set of points of interest inthe area, to receive and interact with direction based services.

FIG. 10 is a flow diagram of an exemplary non-limiting process that canbe employed in the context of direction based services and the loss ofdirection information from a source, such as an on-device digitalcompass. At 1000, a user can opt into a mesh network for sharing ofdirection information. At 1010, connectivity to the device's directionservices, e.g., the on-device digital compass, is lost for some reason,e.g., the digital compass was made in an inferior factory, and stoppedworking after 6 months, a nearby magnetic force is compromising theresults of the compass, etc. At 1020, in accordance with one or moreembodiments, the direction data can be received from other nearbysources (e.g., other devices, a containing vehicle, etc.). At 1030,direction based services are carried out based on or as a function ofthe surrogate direction information.

FIG. 11 is a flow diagram of an exemplary non-limiting process that canbe employed in the context of direction based services and the loss ofpoint of interest data for device interaction via the direction basedservices. At 1100, the device loses connectivity to point of interestdata for the given location, which is normally obtained from a firstdata network. As an example, a mobile phone user may walk into a Costcowarehouse inviting interference with signal reception from the shieldedprimarily metal walls. At 1110, however, according to one or moreembodiments herein, the point of interest data is received from one ormore nearby sources. For example, Costco might make available a localgeo-cache information available by WiFi about all of the objects in thestore and allow users to receive the information as well. At 1120,direction based services are performed based on the points of interestusing the surrogate point of interest information.

As an example of the power of this scenario, a user can walk intoCostco, automatically acquire information about items of interest in thestore, automatically use Costco's location information based on localtower triangulation within the store (or other location information),and then with direction information, as the user points at variousobjects, a voice audio or video notification or both can inform the userof a great deal on that object based on deals available today.

For existing motor vehicle navigation devices, or other conventionalportable GPS navigation devices, where a device does not nativelyinclude directional means such as a compass, the device can have anextension slot that accommodates direction information from an externaldirectional device, such as a compass. Similarly, for laptops or otherportable electronic devices, such devices can be outfitted with a cardor board with a slot for a compass. While any of the services describedherein can make web service calls as part of the pointing and retrievalof endpoint process, as mentioned, limited bandwidth may degrade theinteractive experience. As a result, a limited amount of data can bepredictively maintained on a user's device in cache memory andoptionally aged out as data becomes stale, e.g., when relevance to theuser falls below a threshold.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram of an exemplary general architecture fordelivering pointer based services 1210 based on points of interestinformation retrieved from the network according to one or moreembodiments. Location information 1200 (e.g., WiFi, GLS, towertriangulation, etc.), direction information 1202 (e.g., digital compass)and optionally user intent information 1204, which can be implicit orexplicit, are input to services 1210, which may be any one or more ofweb services 1212, cloud services 1214 or other data services 1216. As aresult, content 1240 is returned for efficient real-time interactionswith POIs of current relevance. POI data and content can come from morethan one storage layer or abstraction 1220, 1222, 1224, . . . , orabstraction 1230, 1232, 1234, . . . , e.g., from local server databasesor remote third party storage locations.

In accordance with various embodiments described herein, an intelligentswitch 1250 is inserted as a layer between the devices and their desirefor services, and the services and their desire to deliver services, soas to automatically switch over to alternate networks in order toconnect the two desires. In this regard, while one or more embodimentsdescribed herein have implied such switch in the device, such switch canbe as far out in the network as may make sense for the given alternatesources for the same information or services needed to perform directionbased services.

FIG. 13 illustrates an exemplary non-limiting device 1300 includingprocessor(s) 1310 having a position engine or subsystem 1320 fordetermining a location of the device 1300 and a direction engine orsubsystem 1330 for determining a direction or orientation of the device1300. Then, by interacting with local application(s) 1340 and/orservice(s) 1370, POI content can be delivered to the device, which cantailored to device intent and a place in which the device is present, orother factors. When the content is displayed according to aninteraction, the tailored content can be rendered by graphic subsystemor display/UI 1350 or audio subsystem 1360.

In one non-limiting embodiment, point structure 1390 is included, e.g.,a triangular or other polygonal piece that points along an orientationline 1395 upon which directional calculations are based. Similarly, theorientation line 1395 can be indicated by graphics subsystem display/UI1350 with or without point structure 1390. In this regard, variousembodiments herein enable POI ID information 1380 to be sent to services1370 so that interactions based on the associated POIs can occur asassisted by services 1370. In this regard, whenever there is adisconnect between data/communications network and information orservices that a device desires in connection with the performance ofdirection based services, the device 1300 employs intelligent switch1375 to find a new source for the information and services, andautomatically switch over to the new source.

Additionally, whether the point of interest at issue falls within thevector can factor in the error in precision of any of the measurements,e.g., different GPS subsystems have different error in precision. Inthis regard, one or more items or points of interest may be found alongthe vector path or arc, within a certain distance depending on context.

While there are a variety of implementations, and ways to sub-divideregions, whether overlapping or not, predictive caching and aging canthus be performed in which a user's present location is discerned. Thelocal cache may still include age out candidate locations, but as thevelocity of the user indicates the user will be at various otherpredicted locations in the future, these regions of POIs associated withthe predicted locations are downloaded to the mobile device.Accordingly, as the user travels to predicted locations, the user nolonger needs the data from the age out candidate locations, which canthen be removed, or flagged for removal when storage is challenged.

Accordingly, using the regional data cache, callbacks and an updatemechanism that is updated dynamically based on movement, new point ofinterest can be added by a service or by a user. Update is thusperformed continuously or substantially continuously based on updatedtravel, velocity, speed, etc. In this regard, a user can add a new pointof interest in the region, add info to a local cache, and then upload tothe zone. To appreciate the problem, the number of worldwide POIs ispractically limitless, however only a small number of POIs will berelevant to a user at a given time. Thus, predictively, a cube of datacan be taken to the device, the user can go offline such that when theuser reconnects. Moreover, the device is intelligent to figure out whathas changed, been weighted, etc., so that the device can synchronizewith the network services and expose the user's changes for otherpeople.

Any device can include the embodiments described herein, including MP3players, such as a Zune device, GPS navigation devices, bike computers,sunglass/visor systems, motor vehicles, mobile phones, laptops, PDA,etc.

One way to obtain the service applications, assuming the underlyingmeasuring instruments to participate in the real-time gathering ofdirectional information, is to message to a service to obtain theapplication, e.g., by text messaging to service, or getting a clientdownload link. Another vehicle for enabling the service is to provide itnatively in the operating system or applications of a mobile devices.Since a hardware abstraction layer accommodates different methods forcollecting position, direction, acceleration information, the sameplatform can be used on any device regardless of the precise underlyinghardware.

With location services, it can be determined that a user's device isphysically inside an actual store, or near a window display of a store.Coupling that to the user's interacting with an object of interest withdirection information to enable direction-based services results in anew opportunity to take action based on the interaction with specificitems.

As mentioned, a device can include a directional component that outputsdirection information as a function of an orientation of the portableelectronic device and that facilitates determining an intent of thedevice. The directional component can optionally be a digital compassthat outputs the direction information. The device can determine asubset of items of interest relative to candidate items of interestwithin a 3-D space as a function of the positional information or thedirection information.

Interacting with an endpoint can include orientating the device towardsome item(s) of interest and determining direction informationassociated with the orientation of the device from which a subset of theitem(s) of interest are identified. For instance, interacting caninclude pointing the device in a direction defining a pointing linegenerally towards items of interest in the place(s) and determining aset of candidate items of interest as a subset of items of interest thatsubstantially intersect with the pointing line, and enabling theselection of one or more items from the set of candidate items.

In one embodiment, a method for a device provisioned for direction basedservices comprises determining direction information associated with apointed to direction relative to a pre-defined orientation of the deviceand identifying POIs within an area defined as a function of the pointedto direction including determining which of a set of POIs intersect withthe area. Next, based on information with respect to the POIs alreadyreceived by the device, information corresponding to the POIs identifiedwithin the area is displayed, e.g., on a map or list. In one embodiment,as new POIs are within range of the device, the IDs associated with thedesignated POIs are transmitted to a network service enabling staticinformation and/or dynamic information about the designated POIs to bereceived from the service.

The designation of POIs for interaction can include explicit input withrespect to the designated one or more POIs, such as one or more of agesture input, a keyword input, an audio input, a video camera input ora touchscreen input with respect to the one or more POIs. Thedesignation of POIs for interaction can include implicit input withrespect to the designated one or more POIs including making inferencesabout the interaction based on a context of present interaction.

The displaying of POI information can be made on a topographical mapvisually representing at least the area defined as a function of apointed to direction and graphical indications of the POIs can bedisplayed within the area at corresponding locations on thetopographical map view. The POIs can also be represented in a filteredlist view, e.g., filtered by restaurants in the area. The designating ofPOIs can include designating pre-defined criteria explicitly orimplicitly. The designating can include marking one or more POIs withtouchscreen input relating to the one or more designated POIs, taggingthe one or more POIs with tag information, or other ways to designatePOIs for interaction, whereby content with respect to the POIs isdownloaded in local memory of the device.

In another embodiment, a portable electronic device includes apositional component for receiving position information as a function ofa location of the portable electronic device and a directional componentthat outputs direction information as a function of an orientation ofthe portable electronic device. In addition, the device includes aprocessor configured to process the position information and thedirection information to determine identifiers or IDs of POIs within apre-defined geographical area of the device, interact with a selectedID, having already received information about the POI corresponding tothe selected identifier, and receive input regarding the selected IDdefining an interaction.

Information about the selected ID defining the future interaction istransmitted along with the point of interest to a network service. Inone embodiment, a pointer structure is provided on the device thatvisually indicates the orientation of the portable electronic devicebased upon which the directional component outputs the directioninformation. For example, this could be a triangular structure thatcomes to a point to show a primary orientation of the device. This couldalso be indicated on the display of the device during provision ofdirection based services.

In one embodiment, the position information and the directioninformation determine a pointing line and a set of candidate points ofinterest are determined as a subset of points of interest thatsubstantially intersect with a function based on the pointing line. Anintersection test for determining subsets of points of interest caninclude defining an arc based on an angle with respect to a pointingline, defining a cone based on an angle with respect to the pointingline, or a line function defining a rectangular space oriented along thepointing line (2-D or 3-D depending on the application). A speaker canrender audio content if a condition upon which the predicted interactionis predicated occurs. The directional component can be a digital compassthat outputs the direction information.

In another embodiment, a method comprises determining a place in which aportable device is located based on location information determined forthe device and identifying a subset of items of interest in the placeincluding determining an orientation of the device based on directioninformation of the device and determining the subset of items ofinterest in the place as a function of the orientation. Next, input withrespect to an item of the subset of items is received defining aninteraction with the item. Predicted interactions can include receivinga notification when a characteristic of an item meets a pre-definedcondition, such as when a price of the item meets a target pricecondition, thereby initiating the predicted interaction.

Supplemental Context Regarding Pointing Devices, Architectures andServices

The following description contains supplemental context regardingpotential non-limiting pointing devices, architectures and associatedservices to further aid in understanding one or more of the aboveembodiments. Any one or more of any additional features described inthis section can be accommodated in any one or more of the embodimentsdescribed above with respect to delayed direction based services at aparticular location for given POI(s). While such combinations ofembodiments or features are possible, for the avoidance of doubt, noembodiments set forth in the subject disclosure should be consideredlimiting on any other embodiments described herein.

As mentioned, a broad range of scenarios can be enabled by a device thatcan take location and direction information about the device and build aservice on top of that information. For example, by using anaccelerometer in coordination with an on board digital compass, anapplication running on a mobile device updates what each endpoint is“looking at” or pointed towards, attempting hit detection on potentialpoints of interest to either produce real-time information for thedevice or to allow the user to select a range, or using the GPS, alocation on a map, and set information such as “Starbucks—10% offcappuccinos today” or “The Alamo—site of . . . ” for others to discover.One or more accelerometers can also be used to perform the function ofdetermining direction information for each endpoint as well. Asdescribed herein, these techniques can become more granular toparticular items within a Starbucks, such as “blueberry cheesecake” ondisplay in the counter, enabling a new type of sale opportunity.

Accordingly, a general device for accomplishing this includes aprocessing engine to resolve a line of sight vector sent from a mobileendpoint and a system to aggregate that data as a platform, enabling ahost of new scenarios predicated on the pointing information known forthe device. The act of pointing with a device, such as the user's mobilephone, thus becomes a powerful vehicle for users to discover andinteract with points of interest around the individual in a way that istailored for the individual. Synchronization of data can also beperformed to facilitate roaming and sharing of POV data and contactsamong different users of the same service.

In a variety of embodiments described herein, 2-dimensional (2D),3-dimensional (3D) or N-dimensional directional-based search, discovery,and interactivity services are enabled for endpoints in the system ofpotential interest to the user.

The pointing information and corresponding algorithms depend upon theassets available in a device for producing the pointing or directionalinformation. The pointing information, however produced according to anunderlying set of measurement components, and interpreted by aprocessing engine, can be one or more vectors. A vector or set ofvectors can have a “width” or “arc” associated with the vector for anymargin of error associated with the pointing of the device. A panningangle can be defined by a user with at least two pointing actions toencompass a set of points of interest, e.g., those that span a certainangle defined by a panning gesture by the user.

In one non-limiting embodiment, a portable electronic device includes apositional component for receiving positional information as a functionof a location of the portable electronic device, a directional componentthat outputs direction information as a function of an orientation ofthe portable electronic device and a location based engine thatprocesses the positional information and the direction information todetermine a subset of points of interest relative to the portableelectronic device as a function of at least the positional informationand the direction information.

The positional component can be a positional GPS component for receivingGPS data as the positional information. The directional component can bea magnetic compass and/or a gyroscopic compass that outputs thedirection information. The device can include acceleration component(s),such as accelerometer(s), that outputs acceleration informationassociated with movement of the portable electronic device. The use of aseparate sensor can also be used to further compensate for tilt andaltitude adjustment calculations.

In one embodiment, the device includes a cache memory for dynamicallystoring a subset of endpoints of interest that are relevant to theportable electronic device and at least one interface to a networkservice for transmitting the positional information and the directioninformation to the network service. In return, based on real-timechanges to the positional information and direction/pointinginformation, the device dynamically receives in the cache memory anupdated subset of endpoints that are potentially relevant to theportable electronic device.

For instance, the subset of endpoints can be updated as a function ofendpoints of interest within a pre-defined distance substantially alonga vector defined by the orientation of the portable electronic device.Alternatively or in addition, the subset of endpoints can be updated asa function of endpoints of interest relevant to a current context of theportable electronic device. In this regard, the device can include a setof Representational State Transfer (REST)-based application programminginterfaces (APIs), or other stateless set of APIs, so that the devicecan communicate with the service over different networks, e.g., Wi-Fi, aGPRS network, etc. or communicate with other users of the service, e.g.,Bluetooth. For the avoidance of doubt, the embodiments are in no waylimited to a REST based implementation, but rather any other state orstateful protocol could be used to obtain information from the serviceto the devices. For the avoidance of doubt, implementations of directionbased services and devices are not dependent on REST basedimplementations, but could also be performed with REST, simple objectaccess protocol (SOAP), really simple syndication (RSS), etc.

The directional component outputs direction information includingcompass information based on calibrated and compensatedheading/directionality information. The directional component can alsoinclude direction information indicating upward or downward tiltinformation associated with a current upward or downward tilt of theportable electronic device, so that the services can detect when a useris pointing upwards or downwards with the device in addition to acertain direction. The height of the vectors itself can also be takeninto account to distinguish between an event of pointing with a devicefrom the top of a building (likely pointing to other buildings, bridges,landmarks, etc.) and the same event from the bottom of the building(likely pointing to a shop at ground level), or towards a ceiling orfloor to differentiate among shelves in a supermarket. A 3-axis magneticfield sensor can also be used to implement a compass to obtain tiltreadings.

Secondary sensors, such as altimeters or pressure readers, can also beincluded in a mobile device and used to detect a height of the device,e.g., what floor a device is on in a parking lot or floor of adepartment store (changing the associated map/floorplan data). Where adevice includes a compass with a planar view of the world (e.g., 2-axiscompass), the inclusion of one or more accelerometers in the device canbe used to supplement the motion vector measured for a device as avirtual third component of the motion vector, e.g., to providemeasurements regarding a third degree of freedom. This option may bedeployed where the provision of a 3-axis compass is too expensive, orotherwise unavailable. In this regard, any type of compass, orcombination of compasses can be used according to the sensitivity ordegree of directional information for a given application or set ofservices. Thus, electromagnetic compass(es), digital compass(es), SW,etc., or any combination of compass(es) are all contemplated for adevice in order to interact with POIs. Moreover, any one or more of thecompass(es) can include support for 1, 2 or 3 axes.

In this respect, a gesturing component can also be included in thedevice to determine a current gesture of a user of the portableelectronic device from a set of pre-defined gestures. For example,gestures can include zoom in, zoom out, panning to define an arc, all tohelp filter over potential subsets of points of interest for the user.

For instance, web services can effectively resolve vector coordinatessent from mobile endpoints into <x,y,z> or other coordinates usinglocation data, such as GPS data, as well as configurable, synchronizedPOV information similar to that found in a GPS system in an automobile.In this regard, any of the embodiments can be applied similarly in anymotor vehicle device. One non-limiting use is also facilitation ofendpoint discovery for synchronization of data of interest to or fromthe user from or to the endpoint.

Among other algorithms for interpreting position/motion/directioninformation, as shown in FIG. 14, a device 1400 employing the directionbased location based services 1402 as described herein in a variety ofembodiments herein include a way to discern between near objects, suchas POI 1414 and far objects, such as POI 1416. Depending on the contextof usage, the time, the user's past, the device state, the speed of thedevice, the nature of the POIs, etc., the service can determine ageneral distance associated with a motion vector. Thus, a motion vector1406 will implicate POI 1414, but not POI 1416, and the opposite wouldbe true for motion vector 1408.

In addition, a device 1400 includes an algorithm for discerning itemssubstantially along a direction at which the device is pointing, andthose not substantially along a direction at which the device ispointing. In this respect, while motion vector 1404 might implicate POI1412, without a specific panning gesture that encompassed moredirections/vectors, POIs 1414 and 1416 would likely not be within thescope of points of interest defined by motion vector 1404. The distanceor reach of a vector can also be tuned by a user, e.g., via a slidercontrol or other control, to quickly expand or contract the scope ofendpoints encompassed by a given “pointing” interaction with the device.

In one non-limiting embodiment, the determination of at what or whom theuser is pointing is performed by calculating an absolute “Look” vector,within a suitable margin of error, by a reading from an accelerometer'stilt and a reading from the magnetic compass. Then, an intersection ofendpoints determines an initial scope, which can be further refineddepending on the particular service employed, i.e., any additionalfilter. For instance, for an apartment search service, endpoints fallingwithin the look vector that are not apartments ready for lease, can bepre-filtered.

In addition to the look vector determination, the engine can alsocompensate for, or begin the look vector, where the user is by establishpositioning (˜15 feet) through an A-GPS stack (or other location basedor GPS subsystem including those with assistance strategies) and alsocompensate for any significant movement/acceleration of the device,where such information is available.

As mentioned, in another aspect, a device can include a client sidecache of potentially relevant points of interest, which, based on theuser's movement history can be dynamically updated. The context, such asgeography, speed, etc. of the user can be factored in when updating. Forinstance, if a user's velocity is 2 miles an hour, the user may bewalking and interested in updates at a city block by city block level,or at a lower level granularity if they are walking in the countryside.Similarly, if a user is moving on a highway at 60 miles per hour, theblock-by-block updates of information are no longer desirable, butrather a granularity can be provided to the device that makes sense forthe speed of the vehicle.

In an automobile context, the location becomes the road on which theautomobile is travelling, and the particular items are the places andthings that are passed on the roadside much like products in aparticular retail store on a shelf or in a display. The pointing basedservices thus creates a virtual “billboard” opportunity for items ofinterest generally along a user's automobile path. Proximity to locationcan lead to an impulse buy, e.g., a user might stop by a museum they arepassing and pointing at with their device, if offered a discount onadmission.

In various alternative embodiments, gyroscopic or magnetic compasses canprovide directional information. A REST based architecture enables datacommunications to occur over different networks, such as Wi-Fi and GPRSarchitectures. REST based APIs can be used, though any statelessmessaging can be used that does not require a long keep alive forcommunicated data/messages. This way, since networks can go down withGPRS antennae, seamless switching can occur to Wi-Fi or Bluetoothnetworks to continue according to the pointing based services enabled bythe embodiments described herein.

A device as provided herein according to one or more embodiments caninclude a file system to interact with a local cache, store updates forsynchronization to the service, exchange information by Bluetooth withother users of the service, etc. Accordingly, operating from a localcache, at least the data in the local cache is still relevant at a timeof disconnection, and thus, the user can still interact with the data.Finally, the device can synchronize according to any updates made at atime of re-connection to a network, or to another device that has moreup to date GPS data, POI data, etc. In this regard, a switchingarchitecture can be adopted for the device to perform a quick transitionfrom connectivity from one networked system (e.g., cell phone towers) toanother computer network (e.g., Wi-Fi) to a local network (e.g., meshnetwork of Bluetooth connected devices).

With respect to user input, a set of soft keys, touch keys, etc. can beprovided to facilitate in the directional-based pointing servicesprovided herein. A device can include a windowing stack in order tooverlay different windows, or provide different windows of informationregarding a point of interest (e.g., hours and phone number windowversus interactive customer feedback window). Audio can be rendered orhandled as input by the device. For instance, voice input can be handledby the service to explicitly point without the need for a physicalmovement of the device. For instance, a user could say into a device“what is this product right in front of me? No, not that one, the oneabove it” and have the device transmit current direction/movementinformation to a service, which in turn intelligently, or iteratively,determines what particular item of interest the user is pointing at, andreturns a host of relevant information about the item.

One non-limiting way for determining a set of points of interest isillustrated in FIG. 15. In FIG. 15, a device 1500 is pointed (e.g.,point and click) in a direction D1, which according to the device orservice parameters, implicitly defines an area within arc 1510 anddistance 1520 that encompasses POI 1530, but does not encompass POI1532. Such an algorithm will also need to determine any edge case POIs,i.e., whether POIs such as POI 1534 are within the scope of pointing indirection D1, where the POI only partially falls within the area definedby arc 1510 and distance 1520.

Other gestures that can be of interest in for a gesturing subsysteminclude recognizing a user's gesture for zoom in or zoom out. Zoomin/zoom out can be done in terms of distance like FIG. 16. In FIG. 16, adevice 1600 pointed in direction D1 may include zoomed in view whichincludes points of interest within distance 1620 and arc 1610, or amedium zoomed view representing points of interest between distance 1620and 1622, or a zoomed out view representing points of interest beyonddistance 1622. These zoom zones correspond to POIs 1630, 1632 and 1634,respectively. More or less zones can be considered depending upon avariety of factors, the service, user preference, etc.

For another non-limiting example, with location information anddirection information, a user can input a first direction via a click,and then a second direction after moving the device via a second click,which in effect defines an arc 1710 for objects of interest in thesystem as illustrated in FIG. 17. For instance, via first pointing actby the user at time t1 in direction D1 and a second pointing act at timet2 by the user in direction D2, an arc 1710 is implicitly defined. Thearea of interest implicitly includes a search of points of object withina distance 1720, which can be zoomed in and out, or selected by theservice based on a known granularity of interest, selected by the user,etc. This can be accomplished with a variety of forms of input to definethe two directions. For instance, the first direction can be definedupon a click-and-hold button event, or other engage-and-hold userinterface element, and the second direction can be defined upon releaseof the button. Similarly, two consecutive clicks corresponding to thetwo different directions D1 and D2 can also be implemented.

Also, instead of focusing on real distance, zooming in or out could alsorepresent a change in terms of granularity, or size, or hierarchy ofobjects. For example, a first pointing gesture with the device mayresult in a shopping mall appearing, but with another gesture, a usercould carry out a recognizable gesture to gain or lose a level ofhierarchical granularity with the points of interest on display. Forinstance, after such gesture, the points of interest could be zoomed into the level of the stores at the shopping mall and what they arecurrently offering.

In addition, a variety of even richer behaviors and gestures can berecognized when acceleration of the device in various axes can bediscerned. Panning, arm extension/retraction, swirling of the device,backhand tennis swings, breaststroke arm action, golf swing motionscould all signify something unique in terms of the behavior of thepointing device, and this is to just name a few motions that could beimplemented in practice. Thus, any of the embodiments herein can definea set of gestures that serve to help the user interact with a set ofservices built on the pointing platform, to help users easily gaininformation about points of information in their environment.

Furthermore, with relatively accurate upward and downward tilt of thedevice, in addition to directional information such as calibrated andcompensated heading/directional information, other services can beenabled. Typically, if a device is ground level, the user is outside,and the device is “pointed” up towards the top of buildings, thegranularity of information about points of interest sought by the user(building level) is different than if the user was pointing at the firstfloor shops of the building (shops level), even where the same compassdirection is implicated. Similarly, where a user is at the top of alandmark such as the Empire State building, a downward tilt at thestreet level (street level granularity) would implicate informationabout different points of interest that if the user of the devicepointed with relatively no tilt at the Statue of Liberty(landmark/building level of granularity).

Also, when a device is moving in a car, it may appear that direction ischanging as the user maintains a pointing action on a single location,but the user is still pointing at the same thing due to displacement.Thus, thus time varying location can be factored into the mathematicsand engine of resolving at what the user is pointing with the device tocompensate for the user experience based upon which all items arerelative.

Accordingly, armed with the device's position, one or more web or cloudservices can analyze the vector information to determine at what or whomthe user is looking/pointing. The service can then provide additionalinformation such as ads, specials, updates, menus, happy hour choices,etc., depending on the endpoint selected, the context of the service,the location (urban or rural), the time (night or day), etc. As aresult, instead of a blank contextless Internet search, a form ofreal-time visual search for users in real 3-D environments is provided.

In one non-limiting embodiment, the direction based pointing servicesare implemented in connection with a pair of glasses, headband, etc.having a corresponding display means that acts in concert with theuser's looking to highlight or overlay features of interest around theuser.

As shown in FIG. 18, once a set of objects is determined from thepointing information according to a variety of contexts of a variety ofservices, a mobile device 1800 can display the objects viarepresentation 1802 according to a variety of user experiences tailoredto the service at issue. For instance, a virtual camera experience canbe provided, where POI graphics or information can be positionedrelative to one another to simulate an imaging experience. A variety ofother user interface experiences can be provided based on the pointingdirection as well.

For instance, a set of different choices are shown in FIG. 19. UI 1900and 1902 illustrate navigation of hierarchical POI information. Forinstance, level1 categories may include category1, category2, category3,category4 and category5, but if a user selects around the categorieswith a thumb-wheel, up-down control, or the like, and chooses one suchas category2. Then, subcategory1, subcategory2, subcategory3 andsubcategory4 are displayed as subcategories of category2. Then, if theuser selects, for instance, subcategory4, perhaps few enough POIs, suchas buildings 1900 and 1910 are found in the subcategory in order todisplay on a 2D map UI 1904 along the pointing direction, oralternatively as a 3D virtual map view 1906 along the pointingdirection.

Once a single POI is implicated or selected, then a full screen view forthe single POI can be displayed, such as the exemplary UI 2000. UI 2000can have one or more of any of the following representative areas. UI2000 can include a static POI image 2002 such as a trademark of a store,or a picture of a person. UI 2000 can also include other media, and astatic POI information portion 2004 for information that tends not tochange such as restaurant hours, menu, contact information, etc. Inaddition, UI 2000 can include an information section for dynamicinformation to be pushed to the user for the POI, e.g., coupons,advertisements, offers, sales, etc. In addition, a dynamic interactiveinformation are 2008 can be included where the user can fill out asurvey, provide feedback to the POI owner, request the POI to contactthe user, make a reservation, buy tickets, etc. UI 2000 also can includea representation of the direction information output by the compass forreference purposes. Further, UI 2000 can include other third partystatic or dynamic content in area 2012.

When things change from the perspective of either the service or theclient, a synchronization process can bring either the client orservice, respectively, up to date. In this way, an ecosystem is enabledwhere a user can point at an object or point of interest, gaininformation about it that is likely to be relevant to the user, interactwith the information concerning the point of interest, and add value toservices ecosystem where the user interacts. The system thusadvantageously supports both static and dynamic content.

Other user interfaces can be considered such as left-right, or up-downarrangements for navigating categories or a special set of soft-keys canbe adaptively provided.

Where a device includes a camera, in one embodiment shown in FIG. 21, arepresentative non-limiting overlay UI 2100 is shown having 3 POIs POI1,POI2 and POI3. The POIs are overlaid over actual image data being realtime viewed on the device via an LCD screen or like display. The actualimage data can be of products on a shelf or other display or exhibit ina store. Thus, as the user aims the camera around his or herenvironment, the lens becomes the pointer, and the POI information canbe overlaid intelligently for discovery of endpoints of interest.Moreover, a similar embodiment can be imagined even without a camera,such as a UI in which 3-D objects are virtually represented based onreal geometries known for the objects relative to the user.

Thus, the device UI can be implemented consistent with a camera, or avirtual camera, view for intuitive use of such devices. The pointermechanism of the device could also switch based on whether the user wascurrently in live view mode for the camera or not. Moreover, assumingsufficient processing power and storage, real time image processingcould discern an object of interest and based on image signatures,overlay POI information over such image in a similar manner to the aboveembodiments. In this regard, with the device provided herein, a varietyof gestures can be employed to zoom in zoom out, perform tilt detectionfor looking down or up, or panning across a field of view to obtain arange of POIs associated with the panning scope.

With respect to a representative set of user settings, a number ormaximum number of desired endpoints delivered as results can beconfigured. How to filter can also be configured, e.g., 5 most likely, 5closest, 5 closest to 100 feet away, 5 within category or sub-category,alphabetical order, etc. In each case, based on a pointing direction,implicitly a cone or other cross section across physical space isdefined as a scope of possible points of interest. In this regard, thewidth or deepness of this cone or cross section can be configurable bythe user to control the accuracy of the pointing, e.g., narrow or wideradius of points and how far out to search.

To support processing of vector information and aggregating POIdatabases from third parties, a variety of storage techniques, such asrelational storage techniques can be used. For instance, Virtual Earthdata can be used for mapping and aggregation of POI data can occur fromthird parties such as Tele Atlas, NavTeq, etc. In this regard,businesses not in the POI database will want to be discovered and thus,the service provides a similar, but far superior from a spatialrelevance standpoint, Yellow Pages experiences where businesses willdesire to have their additional information, such as menus, pricesheets, coupons, pictures, virtual tours, etc. accessible via thesystem.

In addition, a synchronization platform or framework can keep theroaming caches in sync, thereby capturing what users are looking at andefficiently processing changes. Or, where a user goes offline, localchanges can be recorded, and when the user goes back online, such localchanges can be synchronized to the network or service store. Also, sincethe users are in effect pulling information they care about in the hereand in the now through the act of pointing with the device, the systemgenerates high cost per thousand impression (CPM) rates as compared toother forms of demographic targeting. Moreover, the system drivesimpulse buys, since the user may not be physically present in a store,but the user may be near the object, and by being nearby and pointing atthe store, information about a sale concerning the object can be sent tothe user.

As mentioned, different location subsystems, such as towertriangulation, GPS, A-GPS, E-GPS, etc. have different tolerances. Forinstance, with GPS, tolerances can be achieved to about 10 meters. WithA-GPS, tolerances can be tightened to about 12 feet. In turn, withE-GPS, tolerance may be a different error margin still. Compensating forthe different tolerances is part of the interpretation engine fordetermining intersection of a pointing vector and a set of points ofinterest. In addition, as shown in FIGS. 4-6, a distance to project outthe pointing vector can be explicit, configurable, contextual, etc.

In this regard, the various embodiments described herein can employ anyalgorithm for distinguishing among boundaries of the endpoints, such asboundary boxes, or rectangles, triangles, circles, etc. As a defaultradius, e.g., 150 feet could be selected, and such value can beconfigured or be context sensitive to the service provided. On-line realestate sites can be leveraged for existing POI information. Sincedifferent POI databases may track different information at differentgranularities, a way of normalizing the POI data according to oneconvention or standard can also be implemented so that the residentialreal estate location data of Zillow can be integrated with GPSinformation from Starbucks of all the Starbucks by country.

In addition, similar techniques can be implemented in a moving vehicleclient that includes GPS, compass, accelerometer, etc. By filteringbased on scenarios (e.g., I need gas), different subsets of points ofinterest (e.g., gas stations) can be determined for the user based notonly on distance, but actual time it may take to get to the point ofinterest. In this regard, while a gas station may be 100 yards to theright off the highway, the car may have already passed the correspondingexit, and thus more useful information to provide is what gas stationwill take the least amount of time to drive from a current locationbased on direction/location so as to provide points of interest that areup ahead on the road, and not already aged points of interest that wouldrequire turning around from one's destination in order to get to them.

For existing motor vehicle navigation devices, or other conventionalportable GPS navigation devices, where a device does not nativelyinclude directional means such as a compass, the device can have anextension slot that accommodates direction information from an externaldirectional device, such as a compass. Similarly, for laptops or otherportable electronic devices, such devices can be outfitted with a cardor board with a slot for a compass. While any of the services describedherein can make web service calls as part of the pointing and retrievalof endpoint process, as mentioned, one advantageous feature of a user'slocality in real space is that it is inherently more limited than ageneral Internet search for information. As a result, a limited amountof data can be maintained on a user's device in cache memory andproperly aged out as data becomes stale.

While there are a variety of implementations, and ways to sub-divideregions, whether overlapping or not, predictive caching and aging 2200is conceptually illustrated by FIG. 22 in which a user's presentlocation 2202 is discerned. At this point, the local cache stillincludes age out candidate location 2210, but as the velocity of theuser indicates the user will be at predicted locations 2204 and 2206 inthe future, these regions of POIs are downloaded to the mobile device.Accordingly, as the user travels to predicted location 2206, it startsto be clear that the user no longer needs the data from the age outcandidate location 2210, which can then be removed, or flagged forremoval when storage is challenged.

Accordingly, using the regional data cache, callbacks and an updatemechanism that is updated dynamically based on movement, new point ofinterest can be added by a service or by a user. Update is thusperformed continuously or substantially continuously based on updatedtravel, velocity, speed, etc. In this regard, a user can add a new pointof interest in the region, add info to a local cache, and then upload tothe zone. To appreciate the problem, the number of worldwide POIs ispractically limitless, however only a small number of POIs will berelevant to a user at a given time. Thus, predictively, a cube of datacan be taken to the device, the user can go offline such that when theuser reconnects, the device is intelligent to figure out what haschanged, been weighted, etc., so that the device can synchronize withthe network services and expose the user's changes for other people.

The predictive algorithms again depend on what the user is interested infinding, what service the user may be using, the context of the user,etc. They can also be based on velocity, direction, time, etc. Forinstance, if it is nighttime, assumptions based on demographics orpreferences may lead the device to return information about nightclubsor all night diners. Or, instead of giving directions as drivingdirections that calculate distances as absolute distances, i.e., as thecrow flies, a device can take road curves into account sinceinstantaneous pointing information on roads can be collected and handledby a corresponding service when giving driving directions. Or, asanother alternative, the direction one is heading on a road, such as ahighway with a concrete divider, is relevant to the directions that anavigation system should give. Where a U-turn is unavailable and userpasses an exit with a point of interest, for instance, directions shouldtake this into account and consider the heading of the vehicle.

One way to obtain the service applications, assuming the underlyingmeasuring instruments to participate in the real-time gathering ofdirectional information, is to message to a service to obtain theapplication, e.g., by text messaging to service, or getting a clientdownload link. Another vehicle for enabling the service is to provide itnatively in the operating system or applications of a mobile devices.Since a hardware abstraction layer accommodates different methods forcollecting position, direction, acceleration information, the sameplatform can be used on any device regardless of the precise underlyinghardware.

In another aspect of any of the embodiments described herein, becausestateless messaging is employed, if communications drop with onenetwork, the device can begin further communicating via another network.For instance, a device has two channels, and a user gets on a bus, butno longer have GPRS or GPS activity. Nonetheless the user is able to getthe information the device needs from some other channel. Just because atower, or satellites are down, does not mean that the device cannotconnect through an alternative channel, e.g., the bus's GPS locationinformation via Bluetooth.

With respect to exemplary mobile client architectures, a representativedevice can include, as described variously herein, client Side Storagefor housing and providing fast access to cached POI data in the currentregion including associated dynamically updated or static information,such as annotations, coupons from businesses, etc. This includes usagedata tracking and storage. In addition, regional data can be a cachedsubset of the larger service data, always updated based on the region inwhich the client is roaming. For instance, POI data could include as anon-limiting example, the following information:

   POI coordinates and data //{−70.26322, 43.65412, “STARBUCK'S”}   Localized annotations //Menu, prices, hours of operation, etc   Coupons and ads //Classes of coupons (new user, returning, etc)   Support for different kinds of information (e.g., blob v structuredinformation (blob for storage and media; structured for tags,annotations, etc.)

A device can also include usage data and preferences to hold settings aswell as usage data such as coupons “activated,” waypoints, businessesencountered per day, other users encountered, etc. to be analyzed by thecloud services for business intelligence analysis and reporting.

A device can also include a continuous update mechanism, which is aservice that maintains the client's cached copy of a current regionupdated with the latest. Among other ways, this can be achieved with aping-to-pull model that pre-fetches and swaps out the client's cachedregion using travel direction and speed to facilitate roaming amongdifferent regions. This is effectively a paging mechanism for upcomingPOIs. This also includes sending a new or modified POI for the region(with annotations+coupons), sending a new or modified annotation for thePOIs (with coupons), or sending a new or modified coupon for the POI.

A device can also include a Hardware Abstraction Layer (HAL) havingcomponents responsible for abstracting the way the client communicateswith the measuring instruments, e.g., the GPS driver for positioning andLOS accuracy (e.g., open eGPS), magnetic compass for heading androtational information (e.g., gyroscopic), one or more accelerometersfor gestured input and tilt (achieves 3D positional algorithms, assuminggyroscopic compass).

As described earlier, a device can also include methods/interfaces tomake REST calls via GPRS/Wi-Fi and a file system and storage for storingand retrieving the application data and settings.

A device can also include user input and methods to map input to thevirtual keys. For instance, one non-limiting way to accomplish userinput is to have softkeys as follows, though it is to be understood agreat variety of user inputs can be used to achieve interaction with theuser interfaces of the pointing based services.

  SK up/down:    //Up and down on choices   SK right, SK ok/confirm://Choose an option or drill down/next page   SK left, SK cancel/back,//Go back to a previous window, cancel   Exit / Incoming Call events//Exit the app or minimize   In addition, a representative device caninclude a graphics and windowing stack to render the client side UI, aswell as an audio stack to play sounds / alerts.

As mentioned, such a device may also include spatial and mathcomputational components including a set of APIs to perform 3D collisiontesting between subdivided surfaces such as spherical shells (e.g., asimple hit testing model to adopt and boundary definitions for POs),rotate points, and cull as appropriate from conic sections.

As described in various embodiments herein, FIGS. 23 and 24 illustratetwo processes for a device when location (e.g., GPS) and direction(e.g., compass) events occur. In FIG. 23, upon the occurrence of alocation or direction event, at 2300, it is determined whetherpredictive caching should be initiated for a next region to which a useris travelling. At 2310, if so, then the next region of data can bepre-fetched. At 2320, old regional data no longer of relevance can beaged out. At 2330, any usage data can be uploaded to the serviceframework for business intelligence, input to an advertisement engine,etc.

FIG. 24 represents another process for filtering potential POIs after apointing event. Upon the detection of a location and direction event, at2400, for POIs in the device's local cache, a group of POIs aredetermined that pass an intersection algorithm for the direction ofpointing of the device. At 2410, POIs in the group can be represented insome fashion on a UI, e.g., full view if only 1 POI, categorized view,2-D map view, 3-D perspective view, or user images if other users, etc.The possibilities for representation are limitless; the embodimentsdescribed herein are intuitive based on the general notion of pointingbased direction services.

At 2420, upon selection of a POI, static content is determined and anydynamic content is acquired via synchronization. When new data becomesavailable, it is downloaded to stay up to date. At 2430, POI informationis filtered further by user specific information (e.g., if it is theuser's first time at the store, returning customer, loyalty programmember, live baseball game offer for team clothing discounts, etc.). At2440, static and dynamic content that is up to date is rendered for thePOI. In addition, updates and/or interaction with POI information isallowed which can be synced back to the service.

Exemplary Networked and Distributed Environments

One of ordinary skill in the art can appreciate that the variousembodiments of methods and devices for pointing based services andrelated embodiments described herein can be implemented in connectionwith any computer or other client or server device, which can bedeployed as part of a computer network or in a distributed computingenvironment, and can be connected to any kind of data store. In thisregard, the various embodiments described herein can be implemented inany computer system or environment having any number of memory orstorage units, and any number of applications and processes occurringacross any number of storage units. This includes, but is not limitedto, an environment with server computers and client computers deployedin a network environment or a distributed computing environment, havingremote or local storage.

FIG. 25 provides a non-limiting schematic diagram of an exemplarynetworked or distributed computing environment. The distributedcomputing environment comprises computing objects 2510, 2512, etc. andcomputing objects or devices 2520, 2522, 2524, 2526, 2528, etc., whichmay include programs, methods, data stores, programmable logic, etc., asrepresented by applications 2530, 2532, 2534, 2536, 2538. It can beappreciated that objects 2510, 2512, etc. and computing objects ordevices 2520, 2522, 2524, 2526, 2528, etc. may comprise differentdevices, such as PDAs, audio/video devices, mobile phones, MP3 players,laptops, etc.

Each object 2510, 2512, etc. and computing objects or devices 2520,2522, 2524, 2526, 2528, etc. can communicate with one or more otherobjects 2510, 2512, etc. and computing objects or devices 2520, 2522,2524, 2526, 2528, etc. by way of the communications network 2540, eitherdirectly or indirectly. Even though illustrated as a single element inFIG. 25, network 2540 may comprise other computing objects and computingdevices that provide services to the system of FIG. 25, and/or mayrepresent multiple interconnected networks, which are not shown. Eachobject 2510, 2512, etc. or 2520, 2522, 2524, 2526, 2528, etc. can alsocontain an application, such as applications 2530, 2532, 2534, 2536,2538, that might make use of an API, or other object, software, firmwareand/or hardware, suitable for communication with or implementation ofthe delayed interaction model as provided in accordance with variousembodiments.

There are a variety of systems, components, and network configurationsthat support distributed computing environments. For example, computingsystems can be connected together by wired or wireless systems, by localnetworks or widely distributed networks. Currently, many networks arecoupled to the Internet, which provides an infrastructure for widelydistributed computing and encompasses many different networks, thoughany network infrastructure can be used for exemplary communications madeincident to the techniques as described in various embodiments.

Thus, a host of network topologies and network infrastructures, such asclient/server, peer-to-peer, hub and spoke, or hybrid architectures, canbe utilized. In a client/server architecture, particularly a networkedsystem, a client is usually a computer that accesses shared networkresources provided by another computer, e.g., a server. In theillustration of FIG. 25, as a non-limiting example, computers 2520,2522, 2524, 2526, 2528, etc. can be thought of as clients and computers2510, 2512, etc. can be thought of as servers where servers 2510, 2512,etc. provide data services, such as receiving data from client computers2520, 2522, 2524, 2526, 2528, etc., storing of data, processing of data,transmitting data to client computers 2520, 2522, 2524, 2526, 2528,etc., although any computer can be considered a client, a server, orboth, depending on the circumstances. Any of these computing devices maybe processing data, or requesting services or tasks that may implicatethe delayed interaction model and related techniques as described hereinfor one or more embodiments.

A server is typically a remote computer system accessible over a remoteor local network, such as the Internet or wireless networkinfrastructures. The client process may be active in a first computersystem, and the server process may be active in a second computersystem, communicating with one another over a communications medium,thus providing distributed functionality and allowing multiple clientsto take advantage of the information-gathering capabilities of theserver. Any software objects utilized pursuant to the direction basedservices can be provided standalone, or distributed across multiplecomputing devices or objects.

In a network environment in which the communications network/bus 2540 isthe Internet, for example, the servers 2510, 2512, etc. can be Webservers with which the clients 2520, 2522, 2524, 2526, 2528, etc.communicate via any of a number of known protocols, such as thehypertext transfer protocol (HTTP). Servers 2510, 2512, etc. may alsoserve as clients 2520, 2522, 2524, 2526, 2528, etc., as may becharacteristic of a distributed computing environment.

Exemplary Computing Device

As mentioned, various embodiments described herein apply to any devicewherein it may be desirable to perform pointing based services, anddelay interactions with points of interest. It should be understood,therefore, that handheld, portable and other computing devices andcomputing objects of all kinds are contemplated for use in connectionwith the various embodiments described herein, i.e., anywhere that adevice may request pointing based services. Accordingly, the belowgeneral purpose remote computer described below in FIG. 26 is but oneexample, and the embodiments of the subject disclosure may beimplemented with any client having network/bus interoperability andinteraction.

Although not required, any of the embodiments can partly be implementedvia an operating system, for use by a developer of services for a deviceor object, and/or included within application software that operates inconnection with the operable component(s). Software may be described inthe general context of computer-executable instructions, such as programmodules, being executed by one or more computers, such as clientworkstations, servers or other devices. Those skilled in the art willappreciate that network interactions may be practiced with a variety ofcomputer system configurations and protocols.

FIG. 26 thus illustrates an example of a suitable computing systemenvironment 2600 in which one or more of the embodiments may beimplemented, although as made clear above, the computing systemenvironment 2600 is only one example of a suitable computing environmentand is not intended to suggest any limitation as to the scope of use orfunctionality of any of the embodiments. Neither should the computingenvironment 2600 be interpreted as having any dependency or requirementrelating to any one or combination of components illustrated in theexemplary operating environment 2600.

With reference to FIG. 26, an exemplary remote device for implementingone or more embodiments herein can include a general purpose computingdevice in the form of a handheld computer 2610. Components of handheldcomputer 2610 may include, but are not limited to, a processing unit2620, a system memory 2630, and a system bus 2621 that couples varioussystem components including the system memory to the processing unit2620.

Computer 2610 typically includes a variety of computer readable mediaand can be any available media that can be accessed by computer 2610.The system memory 2630 may include computer storage media in the form ofvolatile and/or nonvolatile memory such as read only memory (ROM) and/orrandom access memory (RAM). By way of example, and not limitation,memory 2630 may also include an operating system, application programs,other program modules, and program data.

A user may enter commands and information into the computer 2610 throughinput devices 2640 A monitor or other type of display device is alsoconnected to the system bus 2621 via an interface, such as outputinterface 2650. In addition to a monitor, computers may also includeother peripheral output devices such as speakers and a printer, whichmay be connected through output interface 2650.

The computer 2610 may operate in a networked or distributed environmentusing logical connections to one or more other remote computers, such asremote computer 2670. The remote computer 2670 may be a personalcomputer, a server, a router, a network PC, a peer device or othercommon network node, or any other remote media consumption ortransmission device, and may include any or all of the elementsdescribed above relative to the computer 2610. The logical connectionsdepicted in FIG. 26 include a network 2671, such local area network(LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), but may also include othernetworks/buses. Such networking environments are commonplace in homes,offices, enterprise-wide computer networks, intranets and the Internet.

As mentioned above, while exemplary embodiments have been described inconnection with various computing devices, networks and advertisingarchitectures, the underlying concepts may be applied to any networksystem and any computing device or system in which it is desirable toderive information about surrounding points of interest.

There are multiple ways of implementing one or more of the embodimentsdescribed herein, e.g., an appropriate API, tool kit, driver code,operating system, control, standalone or downloadable software object,etc. which enables applications and services to use the pointing basedservices. Embodiments may be contemplated from the standpoint of an API(or other software object), as well as from a software or hardwareobject that provides pointing platform services in accordance with oneor more of the described embodiments. Various implementations andembodiments described herein may have aspects that are wholly inhardware, partly in hardware and partly in software, as well as insoftware.

The word “exemplary” is used herein to mean serving as an example,instance, or illustration. For the avoidance of doubt, the subjectmatter disclosed herein is not limited by such examples. In addition,any aspect or design described herein as “exemplary” is not necessarilyto be construed as preferred or advantageous over other aspects ordesigns, nor is it meant to preclude equivalent exemplary structures andtechniques known to those of ordinary skill in the art. Furthermore, tothe extent that the terms “includes,” “has,” “contains,” and othersimilar words are used in either the detailed description or the claims,for the avoidance of doubt, such terms are intended to be inclusive in amanner similar to the term “comprising” as an open transition wordwithout precluding any additional or other elements.

As mentioned, the various techniques described herein may be implementedin connection with hardware or software or, where appropriate, with acombination of both. As used herein, the terms “component,” “system” andthe like are likewise intended to refer to a computer-related entity,either hardware, a combination of hardware and software, software, orsoftware in execution. For example, a component may be, but is notlimited to being, a process running on a processor, a processor, anobject, an executable, a thread of execution, a program, and/or acomputer. By way of illustration, both an application running oncomputer and the computer can be a component. One or more components mayreside within a process and/or thread of execution and a component maybe localized on one computer and/or distributed between two or morecomputers.

The aforementioned systems have been described with respect tointeraction between several components. It can be appreciated that suchsystems and components can include those components or specifiedsub-components, some of the specified components or sub-components,and/or additional components, and according to various permutations andcombinations of the foregoing. Sub-components can also be implemented ascomponents communicatively coupled to other components rather thanincluded within parent components (hierarchical). Additionally, itshould be noted that one or more components may be combined into asingle component providing aggregate functionality or divided intoseveral separate sub-components, and any one or more middle layers, suchas a management layer, may be provided to communicatively couple to suchsub-components in order to provide integrated functionality. Anycomponents described herein may also interact with one or more othercomponents not specifically described herein but generally known bythose of skill in the art.

In view of the exemplary systems described supra, methodologies that maybe implemented in accordance with the disclosed subject matter will bebetter appreciated with reference to the flowcharts of the variousfigures. While for purposes of simplicity of explanation, themethodologies are shown and described as a series of blocks, it is to beunderstood and appreciated that the claimed subject matter is notlimited by the order of the blocks, as some blocks may occur indifferent orders and/or concurrently with other blocks from what isdepicted and described herein. Where non-sequential, or branched, flowis illustrated via flowchart, it can be appreciated that various otherbranches, flow paths, and orders of the blocks, may be implemented whichachieve the same or a similar result. Moreover, not all illustratedblocks may be required to implement the methodologies describedhereinafter.

While the various embodiments have been described in connection with thepreferred embodiments of the various figures, it is to be understoodthat other similar embodiments may be used or modifications andadditions may be made to the described embodiment for performing thesame function without deviating therefrom. Still further, one or moreaspects of the above described embodiments may be implemented in oracross a plurality of processing chips or devices, and storage maysimilarly be effected across a plurality of devices. Therefore, thepresent invention should not be limited to any single embodiment, butrather should be construed in breadth and scope in accordance with theappended claims.

1. A method for a device provisioned for pointing based services,comprising: receiving point of interest data from one or more pointingbased services based on pointing information associated with at leastone direction of the device via a first network; losing connectivity tothe first network; identifying at least one other source of point ofinterest data to which the device can connect via a second network; andautomatically connecting to the second network to receive the point ofinterest information from the at least one other source.
 2. The methodof claim 1, wherein the identifying includes automatically searching foran on-site data store of point of interest information pertaininglocally to the device.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the identifyingincludes automatically searching for a data store of point of interestinformation pertaining to points of interest of a physical structurewhere the device is located.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein theidentifying includes automatically identifying at least one othercomputing device having stored thereon point of interest data.
 5. Themethod of claim 4, further comprising: requesting permission to receivethe point of interest data from the at least one other computing device.6. The method of claim 1, wherein the identifying includes automaticallyidentifying at least one other computing device having access to pointof interest data to which the at least one other computing device canconnect via a third network.
 7. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising: receiving point of interest data from one or more pointingbased services based on pointing information associated with at leastone direction of the device via the second network.
 8. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the losing connectivity includes losing connectivity toa long range wireless communications network and the identifyingincludes identifying at least one other source of point of interest datato which the device can connect via a short range wirelesscommunications network.
 9. The method of claim 8, wherein the losingconnectivity includes losing connectivity to a mobile devicecommunications network and the identifying includes identifying at leastone other source of point of interest data to which the device canconnect via Bluetooth.
 10. A portable electronic device, comprising: amemory that stores at least information related to at least directioninformation representing information pertaining to orientation of thedevice, position information representing information pertaining tolocation of the device and point of interest information representinginformation pertaining to points of interest substantially withininteractive range of the device; a positional component for receivingthe position information as a function of a location of the portableelectronic device; a directional component that measures the directioninformation as a function of an orientation of the portable electronicdevice; and a switching component that switches among at least twosources for the position information when at least one source of the atleast two sources for the position information is not deliveringposition information to the device.
 11. The device of claim 10, whereinthe switching component switches among at least two sources for thedirection information when at least one source of the at least twosources for the direction information is not operating.
 12. The deviceof claim 10, wherein the switching component switches among at least twosources for the point of interest information when at least one sourceof the at least two sources for the point of interest information isunavailable.
 13. The device of claim 10, further comprising: at leastone processor configured to process the position information and thedirection information to determine at least one identifier of at leastone point of interest within scope of the device, to receive informationcorresponding to the at least one identifier of the at least one pointof interest, and to display information if the device interacts with theat least one point of interest with the device.
 14. The device of claim10, further comprising: at least one processor configured to process theposition information and the direction information to determine at leastone identifier of at least one point of interest within scope of thedevice, to receive advertisement content corresponding to the at leastone identifier of the at least one point of interest, and to render theadvertisement content if the device interacts with the at least onepoint of interest with the device.
 15. The device of claim 10, furthercomprising: a pointer that visually indicates the orientation of theportable electronic device based upon which the directional componentoutputs the direction information.
 16. The device of claim 10, whereinthe directional component is a digital compass that outputs thedirection information.
 17. A method for a pointing based servicesenabled device, comprising: determining direction information as afunction of a direction for the device; determining position informationas a function of a position for the device; receiving pointing basedservices based on the direction information and position information viaa first network; losing connectivity by the device to the first network;identifying at least one other source for the pointing based services towhich the device can connect on a second network; and automaticallyconnecting to the second network to receive the pointing based servicesfrom the at least one other source.
 18. The method of claim 17, furthercomprising: determining motion information as a function of movement ofthe device and the receiving includes receiving pointing base servicesbased on the direction information, position information and the motioninformation.
 19. The method of claim 17, wherein the connecting includesautomatically connecting to a nearby device that hosts the pointingbased services.
 20. The method of claim 17, wherein the connectingincludes automatically connecting via Bluetooth.